"What?! Many of my toys are also machines?" That's right—simple machines! Simple machines are everywhere! Under your feet when you climb stairs, in your hand when you use a utensil to eat your dinner, even in your arm when you throw a ball. Come visit this science fair project and explore the six types of simple machines. Find out how many are hiding under the hinged lid (yes, another simple machine) of your toy box!
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Just one sheet of paper can lead to a whole lot of fun. How? Paper planes! All you have to know is how to fold and you can have a simple plane in a matter of minutes! But what design should you use to build the best plane? In this aerodynamics science project, you will change the basic design of a paper plane and see how this affects its flight. Specifically, you will increase how much drag the plane experiences and see if this changes how far the paper plane flies. There is a lot of cool…
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How do you feel when you ride your bike into a strong wind? Do your legs feel like lead? How about when the wind is at your back? Does that make you feel ready for the Tour de France? In this science fair project, you will investigate how wind-powered devices, like pinwheels, also react in different ways to the direction of the wind.
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Have you ever seen butterflies fluttering around outside, gliding through the air and landing on flowers? While they are delicate and fragile, butterflies are actually excellent flyers. They are so good, in fact, that scientists at Harvard University studied butterfly wing shapes as an inspiration for building a miniature flying robot. In this science project, you will do your own version of the Harvard scientists' experiment to measure the flight performance of butterfly wings.
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Have you ever watched how trees sway and bend in a strong wind? Have you ever thought about all the homes that could be powered with forces from the wind? In this project you'll discover, through trees, good places in your community for generating wind power.
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EnvEng_p023

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Time Required

Average (6-10 days)

Prerequisites

None

Material Availability

Readily available

Cost

Very Low (under $20)

Safety

Use caution and have an adult with you at unfamiliar locations or locations with traffic nearby.

So you've just heard the "Happy Birthday" song and now it's time to blow out the candles. If you are sitting far away from the candles, you know you'll have to blow harder to get them all out than if you were sitting closer. In this science fair project, you'll blow on different kinds of pinwheels with a blow-dryer and see how far away you can get before they stop spinning. This will give you clues about how sensitive the pinwheels are to wind, and why. So come spin your wheels and get…
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Have you ever wondered why geese fly in a V-formation? In this science fair project, you will build a wind tunnel to test how the formation of birds in flight actually affects their flight efficiency.
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Zoo_p057

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Time Required

Long (2-4 weeks)

Prerequisites

This is an advanced project that will require substantial initiative to design, build, and test. The experimental procedure gives outlines for how to proceed, and includes pictures; but precise details for the setup have to be worked out independently. Also, to perform the analysis, it is recommended that you first read the scientific papers that are listed in the Bibliography.

Material Availability

You will need a web camera and a computer for this science fair project. See the Materials and Equipment list for details.

While watching an ice hockey game, have you ever wondered what differentiates a good player from a great player? For sure, the great player is athletically superior to the good player. But maybe it is a combination of athleticism and equipment. Maybe a great player knows which hockey stick is best for him or her. Hockey players can choose to play with hockey sticks with different flexibilities or "flex." In this science fair project, investigate how stick flex affects shot accuracy and speed.…
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Sports_p049

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Time Required

Average (6-10 days)

Prerequisites

Access to an empty ice rink and knowledge of how to play ice hockey.

Material Availability

Specialty items required. You need access to an empty ice rink, hockey equipment and safety gear, a sports radar gun appropriate for hockey, and two volunteers who also have equipment and safety gear.

A strobe light can illuminate an entire room in just tens of microseconds. Inexpensive strobe lights can flash up to 10 or 20 times per second. This project shows you how to use stroboscopic photography to analyze motion.
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Photo_p003

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- Less Details

Time Required

Average (6-10 days)

Prerequisites

This project requires camera with adjustable shutter speeds and lens apertures, a tripod and cable release.

Have you ever heard someone say that the moon is made of cheese? Even though the craters on the surface of the moon resemble holes in Swiss cheese, we know that this common myth is not true. Find out how craters are formed and why they are different sizes by doing this simple science project.
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